1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to monitoring of environmental parameters and, more particularly, to combined chlorophyll and turbidity sensor system.
2. Background of the Related Art
Real time and in situ measurement of chlorophyll is extremely important for understanding the status of an eco-system. The chlorophyll concentration is the primary indicator for the biomass-productivity of a system. The increase of nutrients in an aquatic system boosts the production of biomass. However, the productivity rate is shown to be dependent, not only on the nutrients concentration, but also on the water turbidity, as discussed in E. G. DeGroodt and V. N. de Jonge; Effects of changes in turbidity and phosphate influx on the ecosystem of the Ems estuary as obtained by a computer simulation model; Hydrobiologia; Volume 195, Number 1/April, 1990, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
The more suspended and dissolved substances in the water, the more sun light is absorbed by them, leaving little to the photosynthetic plankton and plants. Drastic changes in either chlorophyll or turbidity endanger the equilibrium of the ecosystem. In order to observe the chlorophyll concentration and the turbidity of an aquatic system, such as lakes, rivers or maritime locations, many probes have to be employed so that a large area can be covered. Hence, the probes must be reliable and low cost.